CLEVELAND -- Justin Verlander¡¯s season stats shine like a work of art.

His 15-3 record is dazzling. His 1.73 ERA is league-leading. His 0.85 WHIP is minuscule. And his 130 innings pitched are impressive -- and might end up being the most important in the grand scheme of things.

With his six-inning scoreless start in Houston¡¯s 6-0 win over Cleveland on Thursday, Verlander reached that 130 innings mark, triggering his $25 million player option for 2023. And while Verlander and the Astros still have a long way to go before they can focus on next season, the player option being picked up is a huge step forward for the 39-year-old hurler who is putting together a comeback season for the ages.

¡°I wasn't pitching to get to 130 innings,¡± Verlander said after the game. ¡°When we we were doing the contract, [Astros owner] Jim [Crane] told me they wanted 130 innings for my player option. I was asking for a straight player option and they said they¡¯d like 130 innings, and that was that. I thought that was a very fair number the way I like to pitch.¡±

Wednesday¡¯s start was another example of how Verlander is reclaiming his title as one of the best pitchers in baseball. While he only tallied five strikeouts -- a number lower than his season average of 8.9 strikeouts per nine innings -- he only allowed three baserunners, none of whom made it past first base.

In case his dominance could have been any more impressive, consider that he did it at a ballpark where he¡¯s historically struggled. Entering play on Thursday, Verlander had a 5.34 ERA at Progressive Field, the highest mark in his career at any stadium he¡¯s pitched in more than three times.

¡°Is it still above five?¡± Verlander jokingly asked after making his start. ¡°I¡¯ve got some demons to exorcise here. These guys tormented me for a while. It always seemed like I had a good game going and then something would happen to make it go sideways.¡±

Verlander¡¯s fastball was electric as always -- he topped out at 97.1 mph in the fourth inning -- but his curveball was just as sharp, as he recorded 10 whiffs and called strikes on the pitch. With his club in the middle of an 18-games-in-17-days stretch, Astros manager Dusty Baker was appreciative of Verlander¡¯s dominance.

¡°He¡¯s kind of running on empty like everybody. These guys are a little spent. ¡­ He was very good," Baker said.

Verlander¡¯s start was backed up by the bottom of the Astros' lineup, more specifically No. 7 hitter Chas McCormick and No. 9 hitter Mart¨ªn Maldonado, both of whom had a homer and three RBIs. After making a pregame shift from left field to right due to Kyle Tucker being a late scratch with an illness, McCormick responded with his best game of the season, finishing with three hits to tie his season high.

¡°I just know when Verlander¡¯s on the hill I¡¯ve got to lock it in,¡± he said. ¡°I didn¡¯t really feel too good in my first two at-bats ¡­ but then I started to feel good. I¡¯m happy we did a good job as a team.¡±

Maldonado followed McCormick¡¯s big hits with two of his own, as he chased McCormick¡¯s fifth-inning RBI single with a two-run double before going deep shortly after McCormick in the seventh inning.

¡°It felt good to help the team win,¡± Maldonado said. ¡°We know we're going to have men on base when we bat.¡±

And as for catching the mighty Verlander?

¡°It¡¯s fun to be behind the plate for him,¡± Maldonado said with a laugh.

While reaching the 130 inning mark is a personal accomplishment two years in the making for Verlander, he¡¯s not letting it distract him from the bigger goal at hand: bringing another World Series to Houston.

¡°By no means am I ever pitching just to get to 130 innings ¡­ that¡¯s not why I play the game; that¡¯s not why I pitch,¡± he said.